the figures for the dymaxion car were not tested numbers,they were, to the
best of the my readings on the car, "best guess and advertising numbers", I
thought the top speed somebody wrote about was 90+/- . somewhere I saw a
film clip of the dymaxion doing circles around a cop, driver not more than
4 feet from cops face as they circled ....but he sat ahead of the front
axle and I think that makes it a lot easier to intuitively steer the RS
vehicle....and given the obvious aero advantages the dymaxion had over a
'33 Ford, I think the car should have gone 120.....seems I remember there
are still a couple of those in existence, one with over 100,000
miles......http://sts.stanford.edu/dymaxion/map.htm has info on the
dymaxion. now it does state in the website that the car had serious
stability problems.....but, nobody drove the thing IMHO, from how I read
the website anyway.
and moving the driver to the rear of the car should make driving a rear
steer a lot harder, due to now instinctive (since 16 yrs old) self training
on fws cars, but tail steered airplanes learn to rear steer, albeit using
tailfeathers too.....
John Robinson, Mechanician
Mechanical Engineering University of Wisconsin
1513 University Ave.
Madison, Wi. 53706
608-262-3606
Current World Land Speed Record Holder
Bonneville Salt Flats
H/GCC 92 cu.in. 1980 Dodge Colt
144.396 MPH set 2000
MPS-PG 441 c.c. 1967 BSA Victor Motorcycle
95.193 MPH set 2001
Antarctic Ice Driller Oct02-Jan03
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